Turkey Chute and Chuter Buck

Alex Norton begrudgingly performing a ski cut on the Turkey Chute, while this author performs a sitting hip belay with the use of skis as anchors.  It didn't slide.

Justin Strauss surfing down the couloir as usual.

Davey Crocket Mitchell coming down

The team heads towards an unnamed couloir beneath 10,696.  I doubt we were the first ones to ever ski it, but we named it anyway.  "Chuter Buck" was the name of choice, since Turkey Chute is close by and so is Buck Mountain.  Alex came up with it.

We were trying to assess how big the two cliffs in the couloir are, and how steep the entrance.  Guesses varied from 20 to 50 feet.  We were all very intimidated looking up it, and started coming up with other ideas for what to ski.  But then, what the hell, we've got a rope, climbing gear, a deadman, we could make something work.  As long as it wasn't too steep and narrow.

We noticed a team of four working their way down the 4 Hour Couloir on Shadow Peak, which looked awesome.  Then there was another team coming down Chute the Moon above us.  But we figured with the Turkey Chute and Chuter Buck, we had the lines of the day.

Davy getting ready to drop the second cliff.

Alex looking over the edge of the first cliff.

This linkup was one of the best tours of the winter.  Very rarely do you get the combination of deep powder, very safe avalanche conditions, a bluebird day, and phenomenal and challenging terrain.